Alsi, Atasi, Linseed

Atasi consists of dried, ripe seeds of Linum usitatissimum Linn. (Family - Linaceae), an erect annual herb, 0.6-1.2 m high, extensively cultivated throughout the plains of India upto an altitude of 800 m, capsule ripen by end of June, dried seeds separated from capsule by thrashing.

Synonyms

Sanskrit :- Uma, Ksuma

Assamese :- Tisi, Tusi

Bengali :- Masina, Atasi

English :- Linseed

Gujrati :- Alshi, Arasi

Hindi :- Alsi

Kannada :- Agasebeeja, Semeagare, Agasi

Kashmiri :- Alsi

Malayalam :- Agastha, Agasi, Cheru charm

Marathi :- Atshi

Oriya :- Atushi

Punjabi :- Ali

Tamil :- Ali, Virai

Telugu :- Avisa

Urdu :- Alsi, Katan

Description

A) Macroscopic

Seed small, brown, glossy with minutely pitted surface, about 4-6 mm long and 2-2.5 mm in maximum width, elongated-ovoid, flattened, rounded at one end and obliquely pointed at the other, near which on one edge, a light depression enclosing hilum and micropyle, embryo consisting of two yellowish-white, flattened planoconvex cotyledons and a radicle, nearly fills the seed and completely surrounded by a thin, whitish endosperm, both endosperm and embryo oily, testa mucilaginous when soaked in water, odour, characteristic, taste, oily when chewed.

B) Microscopic

Transverse section of seed shows testa consists of isodiametric cells with mucilaginous outer walls, collenchymatous cells of middle layer of seed coat cylindrical, single layered, yellowish brown, longitudinally elongated, about 120-190μ long and 14-17 μ wide, thick, lignified and with pitted walls, single layer of flattened polygonal pigment cells with reddish-brown contents, aleurone grains in the cotyledons, upto 20 μ in diameter, each with globoid and crystalloid, abundant globule of fixed oil and occasional starch grains present.

Identity, Purity and Strength

Foreign matter :- Not more than 1 per cent,

Total Ash :- Not more than 5 per cent,

Acid-insoluble ash :- Not more than 2 per cent,

Alcohol-soluble extractive :- Not less than 30 per cent,

Water-soluble extractive :- Not less than 15 per cent,

Fixed oil :- Not less than 25 per cent,

Active Constituents

Fixed oil, mucilage and protein.

Properties and Action

Rasa :- Madhura, Tikta

Guna :- Guru, Snigdha

Virya :- Usna

Vipaka :- Katu

Karma :- Vataghna, Acaksusya

Important Formulations

Sarsapadi Taila

Therapeutic Uses

Krmiroga, Kustha, Prameha, Siroroga

Dose

3-6 g of the drug in powder form